Rachel Nuwer admits she wasn’t initially convinced when she and her husband, Paul Dix, first looked at this newly built three-bedroom penthouse atop a onetime noodle factory in Williamsburg in 2019. The 2,200-square-foot apartment had a 2,300-square-foot wraparound terrace with fantastic views of the bridge, but the outdoor space was covered in concrete pavers, which gave it a bit of a parking-lot vibe. Fortunately, Nuwer, a freelance science journalist and author of Poached: Inside the Dark World of Wildlife Trafficking as well as a forthcoming book on MDMA, I Feel Love, had done a story on green roofs. She reached out to Brooklyn Grange, and together they concocted a plan to transform it into a garden for family, friends, birds, beehives, crickets, and … bunnies.
Brooklyn Grange got the plantings finished before the pandemic set in, which gave the couple and their friends a lockdown oasis.
“We throw regular rooftop parties for the NYC bunny community — people come by with their bunnies for some outdoor frolicking,” says Nuwer, who grew up in Biloxi, Mississippi, where her mother was known for being an animal rescuer. The family had a menagerie that included rescue cats, a German shepherd, an iguana, a hedgehog, zebra finches, a dove, a horse, chickens, and a snake. “My first rabbit, Poopsie Bun, was actually dumped at my elementary school, and the principal’s office called me in to deal with him.”
It didn’t take that long for Dix, co-founder and CTO of the software firm InfluxData, to warm up to the rabbits but “the bees are another story. We really just have a detente. But they’re docile so I guess they’re ok.” He realized how lucky they were during lockdown. “ Rachel ordered the garden beds, and I built them up here and we planted all of them,” he says. “Anything we could bring into our home to make it a bit more interesting. And we just had the roof installed and spring was coming.”
“I order ladybugs, praying mantises, and midges as natural pest controllers each year,” Nuwer says. “I release crickets for the lovely sound that reminds me of growing up in Mississippi and to create more of a mini-ecosystem up here. We’ve also added earthworms.”
There was also the large concrete building pediment that faced the living-room windows, but Nuwer had a plan for that. “The mural was something we wanted to do before we even moved in,” she says. She first found artist Juan Travieso online. “I love the vibrancy of his work. He focuses a lot on endangered species and habitats, so he’s done a ton of work on wildlife, which aligns to my interests.”
They have a bunny named Furrynand Magellan (as well as a cat named Kit) who lives there with them, and there is room enough to shelter rabbits before they are adopted. “They really are their own creatures, with their own quirky adorable habits,” Nuwer says.
The view facing east with the mural painted by Juan Travieso and his wife, Katerina Santos (who work as TRATOS, a combination of their last names), which includes Nuwer and Dix’s cat, Kit, and their late bunny Attila the Bun. “My only note when we got the design,” Nuwer says, “was ‘Add more insects.’” Nuwer grows asparagus, tomatoes, peppers, rhubarb, and herbs over the summer.
“Paul and I installed a Japanese-maple grove in one corner of the roof,” as well as all the veggie and flower planters, Nuwer says. “This rabbit hutch we thought we were going to use,” Dix adds, “and as you can see it’s in a state of disrepair, but we like it overgrown and wild.”
The terrace overlooking the Williamsburg Bridge, and beyond, is a gathering place for friends and bunny meetups.
The kitchen, with wallpaper by Calico and floating shelving by Asher Israelow. The cabinet installation near the window, by Armada, features dichroic glass shelving that casts a colorful shadow.
“We are currently fostering Mamma Bear. We call her Bee,” Nuwer says of the current foster guest, seen here in the living room, who was saved from a hoarding situation upstate. “She’s been looking for a forever home since January.” The couple fosters through the rabbit rescue group All About Rabbits Rescue.
Nuwer with the couple’s cat, Kit, who is 17 and half years old, in their bedroom. “I found her in a “free kittens” ad in a newspaper in Mississippi.” The wallpaper, MakeUpWallDecor, was found on Etsy.
Dix’s office overlooks the mini maple grove and includes a custom motorized desk by Genesis that converts to a standing desk with the push of a button. The green wall is also by Genesis Furniture and contains a Murphy bed. The office chair is from Herman Miller.
Nuwer works from her office with a custom rug by Rug’Society in Portugal. “The banana and fiddle-leaf fig in this room were both rescues I found on the street,” she says.
The shelving in Nuwer’s office is by Asher Israelow, with “curios from travels around the world.”
The view facing east with the mural painted by Juan Travieso and his wife, Katerina Santos (who work as TRATOS, a combination of their last names), which includes Nuwer and Dix’s cat, Kit, and their late bunny Attila the Bun. “My only note when we got the design,” Nuwer says, “was ‘Add more insects.’” Nuwer grows asparagus, tomatoes, peppers, rhubarb, and herbs over the summer.
“Paul and I installed a Japanese-maple grove in one corner of the roof,” as well as all the veggie and flower planters, Nuwer says. “This rabbit hutch we thought we were going to use,” Dix adds, “and as you can see it’s in a state of disrepair, but we like it overgrown and wild.”
The terrace overlooking the Williamsburg Bridge, and beyond, is a gathering place for friends and bunny meetups.
The kitchen, with wallpaper by Calico and floating shelving by Asher Israelow. The cabinet installation near the window, by Armada, features dichroic glass shelving that casts a colorful shadow.
“We are currently fostering Mamma Bear. We call her Bee,” Nuwer says of the current foster guest, seen here in the living room, who was saved from a hoarding situation upstate. “She’s been looking for a forever home since January.” The couple fosters through the rabbit rescue group All About Rabbits Rescue.
Nuwer with the couple’s cat, Kit, who is 17 and half years old, in their bedroom. “I found her in a “free kittens” ad in a newspaper in Mississippi.” The wallpaper, MakeUpWallDecor, was found on Etsy.
Dix’s office overlooks the mini maple grove and includes a custom motorized desk by Genesis that converts to a standing desk with the push of a button. The green wall is also by Genesis Furniture and contains a Murphy bed. The office chair is from Herman Miller.
Nuwer works from her office with a custom rug by Rug’Society in Portugal. “The banana and fiddle-leaf fig in this room were both rescues I found on the street,” she says.
The shelving in Nuwer’s office is by Asher Israelow, with “curios from travels around the world.”
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